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Miesha foretold it was destiny she'd fight for the title and win. Fate wasn't always on her side, however, as she was often criticized for not following a sound strategy after losses. At UFC 196, it was Holly who tempted fate and didn't follow the wisest game plan.
As the fight unfolded, I wasn't the only one at the bar who questioned the frequency at which Holly kept moving forward and engaging Miesha. Each time she did this, we thought Holly was being careless and potentially inviting takedown attempts. Miesha's challenge, afterall, was to somehow overcome the distance barrier despite possessing deficiencies in speed and mobility relative to Holly. If a fighter has disadvantages, it makes sense to exploit their deficiencies to force him or her to beat you using them. So as long as Holly kept moving away, it would greatly reduce Miesha's opportunities at quality TD attempts.
When Holly kept moving away and was patient, Miesha had no choice but to attempt takedowns at a distance. But the two moments Miesha successfully put Holly on her back, it was when Holly was caught standing still in round 2 and moving forward to engage Miesha in round 5. Holly tempted fate too many times that night by not consistently moving away and the contrast in strategies cost her the title.
As the fight unfolded, I wasn't the only one at the bar who questioned the frequency at which Holly kept moving forward and engaging Miesha. Each time she did this, we thought Holly was being careless and potentially inviting takedown attempts. Miesha's challenge, afterall, was to somehow overcome the distance barrier despite possessing deficiencies in speed and mobility relative to Holly. If a fighter has disadvantages, it makes sense to exploit their deficiencies to force him or her to beat you using them. So as long as Holly kept moving away, it would greatly reduce Miesha's opportunities at quality TD attempts.
When Holly kept moving away and was patient, Miesha had no choice but to attempt takedowns at a distance. But the two moments Miesha successfully put Holly on her back, it was when Holly was caught standing still in round 2 and moving forward to engage Miesha in round 5. Holly tempted fate too many times that night by not consistently moving away and the contrast in strategies cost her the title.
